Resilience

The figures that populate these documentary shorts refuse to be confined, or defined, by their oppression. If anything, the challenges they’ve faced are an opportunity. An opportunity to embrace, without reservation, who they are and what they believe. Gun control advocates, sanctuary-seekers, the wrongfully imprisoned: these courageous individuals mine painful pasts and contemplate uncertain futures, but remain steadfast in their resolve to resist at any cost.

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Marcie Cohen Ferris Does the Work

Ava Lowrey | Oxford, MS | 9 minGenre: Documentary

For Marcie Cohen Ferris, a distinguished professor of American Studies at Chapel Hill, food has always been a lens through which to view the world. As a Southerner and a Jew, the cuisines and cultures unique to both aspects of her identity have animated her scholarship for decades.

The Arrest

Kira Akerman | New Orleans, Louisiana | 7 minGenre: Documentary

In this riveting documentary, shot in near claustrophobic close-up by Indie Grits alum Kira Akerman, soft-spoken Chastity recounts the degrading days she spent in the Louisiana prison system following a wrongful arrest during a blind date.

Santuario

Juana Ortega immigrated to the United States from Guatemala over a quarter century ago. After decades spent living and working in Greensboro, North Carolina, the government threatens to deport her–an outcome that seems all too likely, until an Episcopal church steps in to provide sanctuary.

Practice

Iyabo Kwayana | Atlanta, GA | 10 minGenre: Documentary

Throngs of perfectly synchronized martial arts practitioners fill each and every frame of this meticulously observed documentary short, a study of uniformity, discipline, and fearsome focus within a group of dedicated young men in China.

VONN

Emily MacKenzie | New Orleans, LA | 5 minGenre: Documentary

There are losses that, on closer inspection, aren’t actually losses at all. Of their double mastectomy, cancer survivor Vonn Jensen says: “Finally, there was room for me to grow into me.” This emotionally unvarnished documentary about one person’s journey toward self-actualization follows Vonn through their morning routine.

Come & Take It

PJ Raval | Austin, TX | 24 minGenre: Documentary

Texas is full of contradictions. In a state where a major university allows open-carry in classrooms, it’s a misdemeanor to brandish a dildo in public. To highlight this absurdity, activist Jessica Jin founds the #CocksNotGlocks movement, galvanizing fellow students and hordes of social media followers to protest lax gun regulations.